Not on Twitter yet? Do me a favor. After you get done reading this article, sign up for an account and follow these 10 tips to kick-start your Twitter presence.
Here are 10 tips to start, or better utilize, your company’s Twitter account.
1. Follow your customers
Start a sign-up sheet in your store or ask your customer for their twitter handle (mine’s @mattgiovanisci, AQUA uses @aquamagazine). Follow each customer and they’ll probably follow you back.
2. Follow the brands you offer
You will get a lot of great advice from the pool and spa brands with Twitter accounts. They will provide excellent information that you can pass onto your customers. Just today, for example, @filburmfg posted tips on cleaning sand, D.E. and cartridge filters.
3. Don’t follow just anyone
Following a ton of users will get you more followers, but who cares? Those followers are not important to your business. Your goal is to provide value and information to your current customers. Trust me! If you continue to do this, it will lead to more followers, and to more important followers.
4. Tweet valuable information
You only have 140 characters to, so make them count. Tweet about things your customers will want to hear. For example:
“Make sure you drain the water off your pool cover before removing it this spring.”
This is a great tip for opening a swimming pool and your customers will appreciate it.
5. Tweet about sales, discounts and special offers
If you are having a big sale, or have some clearance items that are marked down, don’t be afraid to tweet about it! The great thing about Twitter is it’s free! You don’t have to take out a page in the newspaper to let your customers know that you have five marked-down solar blankets from last year or an early-bird pool opening special for the first 50 customers to schedule.
6. Don’t tweet exclusively about sales and promotions
Yes, you need to promote your business, but don’t overdo. If all you’re tweeting about is sales, discounts and clearance items, some people will certainly unfollow you, or they’ll learn to tune you out. No one likes a shameless promoter. Provide more value and great content and sprinkle it with promotion.
7. Use a real picture for your profile
You have one little profile picture that you can upload to represent your Twitter account. Don’t use your company logo. Everyone knows what you logo looks like. Instead, post a picture of the person who will be tweeting. People want to know there is someone (not a computer) behind the Twitter account.
8. Don’t tweet too often
Tweeting is good, and providing lots of content is good, but there needs to be a limit. Over tweeting will saturate your customer’s Twitter feed, and some will unfollow you as a result.
You should tweet no more than 3 times a day, and space it out evenly. You can obviously tweet more or less than that, but it’s a good idea to keep it on the lighter side.
9. Retweet
I mentioned earlier that you should follow the brands that you offer. Sometimes, those brands will provide excellent content or information that is worth passing on to your customers. There’s a button for doing this on Twitter. Here's what it'll look like:
“RT @jacuzzioffical Simple Hot Tub Maintenance 101: Easy Basics of Caring For Your Spa”
Attached to the tweet there will be a link to a web page with those tips. If you have a customer who purchased a Jacuzzi hot tub from you, they will find this information interesting and valuable.
10. Reply to your customers
You should encourage your customers to ask questions via Twitter. If they do, you should respond immediately. In fact, if anyone responds to you, you should respond back as quickly as possible. If someone retweets one of your tweets, thank them by saying:
“@swimuniversity thanks for the retweet!”
I would love to follow anyone who has a twitter account for their pool or spa business. We are always providing content and engaging with our followers. So follow us @swimuniversity.com.
If you have anything you would like to add, please feel free to add it below. If you have any questions, add a comment and I’ll answer. Twitter can be a great marketing tool and I hope you find these tips helpful in growing your business.
Matt Giovanisci is the creator of Swim University (www.swimuniversity.com) and has over 15 years of experience in the swimming pool and hot tub industry. He is also an award winning web designer and has been featured on Martha Stewart Radio as a pool & spa care expert.